Know the Ways of Caring for Baby Chickens

Breeding chickens is easy but you will need advice in caring for baby chickens as it can be tricky. Here are some helpful tips in caring for baby chickens:

The first thing that you have to look into is how to feed the baby chickens. As hatchlings, they will need their food to be placed near them. After several days, when they are stronger, you can place the food in troughs for easier feeding. Feed them starter or grower feed to provide them with good nutrition. Giving them finely chopped egg yolk is advised to encourage them to eat. Baby chickens will eat all the time so be sure that they never run out of food to ensure proper growth.

Spending few dollars on a good chicken feeder for your small chickens is a good investment. Using such feeder will make your chickens safe and clean as using bowl or dish to feed small chickens can cause untidiness and fighting amongst the chicken themselves. It can also lead to death for some chicks as they can be trapped underneath the bowl or dish if you will not keep a close eye on. You can also buy specialized feeder if you want.

Giving them ample supply of water is essential for their survival and growth. Death in baby chickens is sometimes caused by dehydration so make sure that you give them enough water. Give them only lukewarm water, never give them cold water.

Temperature should be a constant 90 and 95 degrees Fahrenheit to provide them with warmth. This is usually done by placing a 250-watt bulb inside the pen. Put a thermometer in the pen to monitor the temperature. Slowly lessen it by 1 degree per week until you reach 70 degrees when the baby chickens are strong enough to survive.

As baby chickens empty their bowels very frequently, lining their habitat with a good absorbent material is best recommended. It is better to use an inch thick pine shavings spread as an absorbent as well. Using newspapers is not recommended as this is not useful as an absorbent. Having a slippery surface can lead your chicks to contract a deformity which is called splayed legs. This deformity can also lead to your chicks being picked by fellow chicks on the deformed area until they die.

Caring for baby chicks should be easy, just follow these tips and your baby chicks will grow into big, healthy chickens.